As part of the public programme around Hara’s new exhibition The Promises of Monsters, Mine Küçük will discuss the monsters and ghosts of Anatolian archaeology.

Anatolian archaeology reveals not only traces of everyday life in bygone ages, but also echoes of dreams, fears, and beings that inhabit the boundaries of the known world. In this talk, we revisit the majestic lions and sphinxes standing guard at the gates of Hattuşa and Alacahöyük, the predatory animals depicted ready to attack on the stone pillars of Göbeklitepe, and the figure of Medusa whose gaze has unsettled viewers for centuries. Are these forms carved in stone merely decorative, or might they serve as guardians of unseen realms?

Across the ancient cities of Anatolia, such hybrid and powerful beings move between threat and protection, fear and fascination. Blending human and animal, reality and imagination, these figures reveal how past societies made sense of the world, where they drew its boundaries, and how they sought to protect the sacred.

Join us in reflecting on what we truly mean by “monster”. Perhaps these beings, stationed at the threshold, are there to remind us of the limits we ourselves inhabit.

Time: 14.30

This event is free of charge.

For registration: [email protected]